Poetry tops the list of things I love. I’ve never had a chance to study it as an art form. The college I went to didn’t have much use for poetry. Nobody ever got rich from writing. I can make the statement they didn’t place much value on the written word as a means of expression. In my time there, only one creative writing class was offered every four years because it was a requirement for middle school teachers. I felt sorry for my professor. It was his last year before retirement. All my classmates did was complain. I decided to devote 2021 to writing different styles of poetry. Therefore, in February, I plan to write sonnets. I’ve titled this one Crazy Quilt.
The sonnet form I used to write Crazy Quilt
I used the style of a Shakespearean Sonnet to write Crazy Quilt. There is a certain pattern used in one of these poems
First, Quatrain establishs the subject of the sonnet. It consists of four lines with a rhyme scheme of ABAB.
Second, Quatrain develops the sonnet’s theme. It also consists of four lines with a rhyme scheme of CDCD.
Third, Quatrain rounds off the sonnet with a rhyme scheme of EFEF.
The ending couplet should act as the conclusion and uses a GG rhyme scheme.
The poet should use the iambic pentameter when writing a sonnet. I don’t if I can achieve this since I can’t walk and chew gum at the same time. Also, I will be recovering from having knee replacement surgery. My guess is pain killers will be involved. Hang onto your hats. This month’s exploration of poetry should be interesting.
Crazy Quilt
Discarded clothing and fabric remnants by the yard
Pieced onto scrap material in an overlapping style
Then comes the stitching simple, intricate, and hard
To hide the seams your hands travel a country mile
Blanket, Chevron, buttonhole, Coral, and Cretan stitches
Join with a collection of chain, herringbone, fly, and lazy daisy
You’re moving a long now without any sewing snags or glitches
Next come the embellishments to make your quilt crazy
Patches you find along the way or at a junk store
Buttons salvaged from clothing or bought cheap.
Beads to add a little sparkle that wasn’t there before
Finally, sew silk flowers onto the fabric leap
When you are finish you will have recovered
A memory left for the quilter’s hands to uncover
Molly Shea is an accomplished fictional short story writer from Indiana who writes short stories and novels about a fictional town called Tecumseh. To read more of her short stories and adventures, click here.
Be sure to follow Molly on Twitter!
Lovely. Quilting is kind of the ultimate in reuse, re-purpose, and recycle…except it’s not just the materials…but the echo of people’s lives…where nothing is junk or spare parts.
This is so true.